Good Times In Purgatory
by LadyOfTheDrakon
Summary: Ashley and Shepard decide to go to Purgatory for drinks. Still suck at summaries. T for language.


Well, while I was not sleeping last night, this one came into my head.

And yay! This is Shepley!

Takes place after the Cerberus Attack.

=\/=

While at the Citadel, Ashley and Shepard decided to go to Purgatory for a few drinks.

It was odd, despite the Reaper invasion and Cerberus attack, everyone at Purgatory continued to dance and drink like normal.

"How can everyone act like nothing is going on?" Shepard shouted over the music.

"That's the power of alcohol for you," Ashley shouted back, as they continued up the stairs.

Shepard nodded an acknowledgement toward Aria as they walked by.

"You know her?" Ashley asked, she could tell that the Asari was powerful and had great influence over many people.

"I guess you can say we're friends. It's kind of a long story," Shepard answered back, but could see the caution in Ashley's eyes. "Don't worry, she's on our side," he tried to reassure her.

"I guess it's a lot better than her being against us," Ashley shrugged back.

When they reached the top of the steps Ashley nudged Shepard. "Wanna dance?" she asked trying to contain her laughter.

Shepard just glared at her.

"I'm kidding," Ashley finally laughed. "We wouldn't want everyone to know that you can't dance."

"Yeah yeah," Shepard said bitterly and walked with her to the bar.

It was times like these that Shepard really hated being in the Alliance. He couldn't even hold hands with Ashley without worrying that it would get back to the brass. Though he himself hated it when people flaunted their relationships in public, he wanted to be able to wrap his arm around Ashley while they walked around. But he would just have to settle with friendly drinks and flirty banter.

"Two shots," Ashley told the bartender, when they found an empty spot. "To some relaxation," she said holding up her glass.

"It's about time," Shepard agreed and toasted with her.

They had another shot when new music began to play, it was fairly fast paced and a little more Earthly. Apparently everyone loved it, though, since they cheered and more people moved to the dance floor.

Ashley even had a big smile. "Sorry Skipper, but I have to dance to this one," she said and began to dance toward everyone else.

Shepard just smiled and ordered a regular beer as he watched her. She was a great dancer, she jumped, swayed, and bobbed perfectly to the music. He knew it was only a matter of time for others to notice her and begin to crowed around her.

Shepard had just finished his beer when he noticed that a couple of guys were already dancing with Ashley. They seemed harmless, they kept their distance, so Shepard just ordered another beer.

"I thought you humans weren't supposed to mix drinks," the Salarian bartender said.

Shepard smiled at him. "Only the ones that can't handle it," he said and began to drink his beer. Shepard wasn't a lightweight for anything, especially when it came to drinking. He came from an Irish family so it was normal for his dad and uncle to give him a few drinks here and there.

His smile soon fell though, when he saw the men were now very close to Ashley. He wasn't sure if she didn't mind or just didn't notice them, but he did and he didn't like it.

He wasn't sure what to do though. He didn't want to ruin Ashley's good time by taking her off the dance floor but he couldn't beat the guys up without causing a scene thus still ruining Ashley's time.

"How much longer does the song last?" He asked the bartender, hoping that it was about to end.

"A few more minutes," the Salarian yelled back, causing Shepard's hope to fall.

Shepard sighed when he figured out that his only option was to actually go out and dance with Ashley himself.

Before he did though, Shepard decided to observe some of the guys that were dancing fairly well and memorized their moves. He also tried to remember some of the things that Jack taught him when he came with her.

When he thought he had it down, Shepard chugged the last of his beer and began walking towards Ashley.

"What are you doing out here?" Ashley asked with a large smile.

"Trying not to look like a complete idiot," Shepard answered as he began to sway back and forth, still trying to figure out which moves would go best with Ashley's.

"How's that working out?" Ashley asked, pretending like she wasn't dancing with Shepard. To her surprise, though, Shepard actually began to dance, and not in his usual shuffle.

"Hey, not bad," she said, quite impressed and began to dance with him. She even put her hands on his sides to better sync their movements and to occasionally help him.

Shepard even began to have fun, especially when the two men left, and was a little sad when the music stopped.

"Wow Skipper," Ashley said when they were back at the bar. "When did you learn to dance?"

"I knew all along, I was just hiding it," Shepard joked, earning a light slap on his stomach.

"Why'd you decide to dance?" Ashley asked after another shot.

"Well," Shepard started and drank his shot. "There were a couple of guys dancing next to you and I didn't like it. I need another shot," he explained quickly, trying to hide his embarrassment.

Ashley laughed. "You mean you were jealous?" she asked, teasingly.

Shepard, though, was not amused and downed his next shot quickly.

"You know," she started, nudging Shepard's arm. "I'm glad you did go out there."

"Really?" Shepard asked, looking down at her.

"Yeah," she answered, her face full of bliss. "We danced together and had a great time." Then with an amused grin added "Plus, those guys were really getting on my nerves."

"They weren't very good at dancing huh?" Shepard said, knowing that the guys were dancing like he usually does.

"Not at all," Ashley laughed, causing Shepard join her.

Their mirth was short lived though, when the two men approached Ashley.

"Hello sweetie," one of them said as he leaned against the bar.

"How 'bout we order you a drink?" the other said, standing next to her. Both men's gazes wandered over her body.

"No thanks. I'm taken care of," she said looking back at Shepard, who straightened out to his full height.

"Well, how about another dance?" the other one asked then, neither of them noticing the fairly large man staring them down.

Ashley had to hold in her laugh as she thought about how terrible the two really are at dancing. "No. I'm fine," she said, her hand over her mouth.

"Oh come on," the guy standing beside her said, reaching for her.

Ashley quickly swatted his hand away. "If either of you touch me, you'll be sorry," she warned. Shepard smiled, knowing that she could easily take out the clueless idiots.

"You wanna go somewhere private so you can punish us then?" the guy at the bar asked, putting his hand on her hip. As soon as he did, though, his head snapped back from Ashley's quick jab. "Ow! You broke my nose!" he yelled, blood gushing from his nostrils.

"I think it's an improvement," Ashley said smugly.

"You bitch," the other guy said as he grabbed her arm. "I'll show yo-"

Before he could even finish his sentence, Shepard sent his fist right into the man's jaw, easily knocking him out.

"Fuck. Bill you alright?" the other guy asked kneeling down to his friend.

"Hey," one of the Turian bouncers called. "Get your dumb ass friend out of here and stop bleeding all over the place," he said annoyed, clearly used to this kind of activity.

"Look at the ponies, Tom" Bill said, now conscious again, as he hobbled out with his friend.

Ashley looked at Shepard then. "I could have handled them," she said, angry that he wouldn't let her defend herself.

"And let you have all the fun," Shepard answered, grinning.

Ashley looked up at him, smiling, his statement having easily calmed her down. "Forget the regs," she said and brought Shepard down into a deep kiss.

=\/=

Tah Dah!

Sorry if Ashley seems a little OOC, but I'm in the middle of ME2 so the only time you see her, she's angry. I think this is what she would kinda be like though: A little flirty and teasy (is that even a word?).

Again, sorry for it being poorly written.

Anyway hope you guys enjoyed.


End file.
